The present invention relates to medical pumps for the deliver of pain medication and in particular to a medical pump system providing improved pain management.
The management of pain, for example, associated with postsurgical recovery, is increasingly recognized as an important part of the healthcare process. Nevertheless, because pain is highly subjective and unique to an individual, assessing and responding to patient pain can be difficult. In addition, medications for the management of pain can have serious drawbacks including toxicity and the promotion of dependency on the medication. For these reasons, the management of pain requires that both of the problems of too much or too little pain medication be addressed.
It is generally understood to provide surveys to the patient to better understand the level of pain that the patient is experiencing. These surveys may be administered periodically by hospital personnel, in addition, on-demand pain medication systems, for example, that deliver a bolus of pain medication when requested by the patient, are known for providing the patient with greater control over pain relief. The decision about pain medication, however, cannot be left completely to the patient who will typically be underinformed with respect to the risks of the pain medication.
Although pain management is important to proper delivery of healthcare, understanding and managing the problem for each patient can be difficult and time-consuming for the healthcare organization.